Closure and an assembly of the closure with a container

ABSTRACT

An assembly of a closure with a container, for sealing of the container, comprises the container having an inner container surface defining a cavity opening to ambient through an opening, the closure comprising an upper portion and a lower portion, the lower portion having a lower lateral surface, the lower portion being adapted to be inserted into the opening of the container and two grooves provided on the lower lateral surface and adapted to receive two respective sealing members, the two grooves being separated by a predetermined distance, the two sealing members provided in the two respective grooves, the two sealing members being adapted to provide sealing between the lower lateral surface and the inner container surface, wherein the lower lateral surface, the inner container surface and the two auxiliary sealing members together define an annular space and a barrier sealant in the annular space.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/731,565 filed on Jun. 29, 2017, which is herein incorporated byreference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to sealants and sealingmaterials and in particular to devices and methods for use in sealingcontainers, chambers and spaces so as to provide effective barriersagainst ingress of environmental components and egress of contents,particularly volatile components, to and from materials packaged,shipped, stored, processed or otherwise present in the containers.

BACKGROUND ART

From long before the dawn of civilization to the present day, hominidshave faced a choice of how much of their food to eat and how much tosave for future uses, particularly planting, future consumption andanimal feed. It is important that certain and perhaps differentqualities be preserved over the storage periods for both food and seed.More recently hominids have introduced commerce, and into commercevarious other commodities, many of which require special storageconditions. Maintaining optimal storage conditions usually impliessealing to prevent exchange with the environment. Throughout history andprehistory hominids have stored commodities, including agriculturalproducts, in a variety of containers. Perhaps the best success withstorage has been realized in glass, ceramic and metal containers. Itlong has been observed that many commodities are better preserved in theabsence of oxygen, moisture or both. This would be the case if onlybecause insects and rodents are unable to eat in the absence of air oroxygen, but also because preventing or minimizing exposure to oxygen andmoisture retards spoilage by oxidation, microbes and hydrolysis.

Below a certain water activity level, bacteria and molds are incapableof activity. Many bacteria and fungi also are unable to function in theabsence of oxygen. Thus, it would be beneficial if closing devices forcontainers could be manufactured to seal in ways that provide strongbarriers to ingress of oxygen, moisture and other environmentalsubstances. In some cases, stored commodities are susceptible to lossesby evaporation, including loss of volatiles, where strong barriers canprovide additional protection of product quality. For example, bypreventing loss of flavors or essential oils. By strong is meant lowpermeability.

In recent centuries, Herculean efforts have been expended to achievebetter sealing of containers in science, engineering, art and commerce.Many of these efforts are represented in the patent, technical andscientific literature. The best prior art approaches to achieve highquality sealing include metal-to-metal contact with pressure or fusionand metal-to-glass contact with pressure, chemical bonding, fusion orsome combination thereof. Continuous contact and considerable pressuregenerally are required to seal metal to glass and metal to metal,necessitating precision machined hardware, high torque values, multiplefasteners or other relatively expensive measures. These approachesgenerally have not been feasible for containers employed in routinecommerce of commodities, both because of the expense of precisionhigh-strength hardware and close-tolerance manufacture, and the factthat these approaches are not suited to high-speed processing.

Thus, the standard practice in commerce has been to manufacture glassjars with metal or plastic closures, where the seal is made with a thingasket of inexpensive and often toxic polymer. In many cases, theplasticized polymer is permanently bonded to a metal closure using aplastisol process. Many plastisol seals utilize endocrine disruptors orother toxic compounds as plasticizers, which, all other things beingequal, are undesirable for use in food containers, except in cases whereprofits are preferred over customer safety. In the case of metal cans,the seams often are sealed with plastisol during rolling and crimping,which provides an effective barrier against microbial contamination anddust, but not against ingress of oxygen and moisture, nor egress ofvolatiles. Clay containers are quite rare in modern commerce, but wereimportant in ancient times. Were it possible to seal them well, theymight play a more important role in future commerce.

Unfortunately, the polymers used to seal almost all containers ofcommerce are invariably permeable to gases and vapors, the inexpensivepolymers moreso than others. The plasticizers in plastisols,particularly phthalates and oxygenated oils, are susceptible tomigration into products held in the containers. In fact, there are veryfew, if any, polymers that are able to effectively block migration ofgases and vapors. There is a wide range of barrier effectiveness acrossthe many families of polymers.

In light of the discussion above, there is required a closure and anassembly of the closure with a container, that does not suffer fromabove mentioned deficiencies.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise,the words “comprise”, “comprises” and “comprising” will be understood toimply the inclusion of a stated step or element or group of steps orelements but not the exclusion of any other step or element or group ofsteps or elements.

Any one of the terms: “including” or “which includes” or “that includes”as used herein is also an open term that also means including at leastthe elements/features that follow the term, but not excluding others.

Any discussion of the background art throughout the specification shouldin no way be considered as an admission that such background art isprior art nor that such background art is widely known or forms part ofthe common general knowledge in the field in the US or anywhere else.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is providedan assembly of a closure with a container, for sealing of the container,the assembly comprising the container having an inner container surfacedefining a cavity opening to ambient through an opening, the innersurface continuing through the opening to be contiguous with the outersurface, the closure comprising an upper portion and a lower portion,the lower portion having a lower lateral surface, the lower portionbeing adapted to be inserted into or onto the opening of the containerand two grooves provided on the lower lateral surface or on thecontainer or on an intermediate closure and adapted to receive tworespective sealing members, the two grooves being separated by apredetermined distance, the two sealing members provided in the tworespective grooves, the two sealing members being adapted to providesealing between the lower lateral surface and the container surface,wherein the lower lateral surface, the container surface and the twoauxiliary sealing members together define an annular space and a barriersealant is placed in the annular space.

In one embodiment of the invention, the sealing members are selectedfrom a group consisting of o-rings, barbs or rings made up of syntheticpolymers or curable compositions.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises aclamping arrangement adapted to clamp the closure with the container.

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure further comprises one ormore passages connecting one or more respective sealant receiving portsin the upper portion with one or more respective lateral openings,between the two grooves, in the lower lateral surface.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises oneor more plugs provided at the one or more respective sealant receivingports, the one or more plugs being adapted to prevent the barriersealant from escaping through the one or more respective passages.

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure is made up of materialselected from a group consisting of metals, ceramics, glasses andpolymers.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisesa lip portion, a width of the lip portion being greater than a width ofthe opening of the container.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisesa second cavity.

In one embodiment of the invention, the second cavity is adapted toreceive one or more of an environmental indicator and an environmentalcontrol element.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises asecond closure having a substantially flat disk fastened to thecontainer and placed above the closure, comprising a second closure.

In one embodiment of the invention, the flat disk further comprises aflat glass plate placed between the closure and the container.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisestwo auxiliary grooves provided at an upper surface of the upper portion,the two auxiliary groves being adapted to receive two respectiveauxiliary sealing members, wherein the two auxiliary grooves areoriented in a direction normal to the surface.

In one embodiment of the invention, the one or more passages furtherconnect the one or more respective sealant receiving ports in the upperportion with one or more respective upper openings, between the twoauxiliary grooves, in the upper surface.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises thetwo auxiliary sealing members adapted to provide sealing between a lowerplate surface of the flat glass disk and the upper surface, wherein theupper surface, the lower disk surface and the two auxiliary sealingmembers define an auxiliary annular space.

In one embodiment of the invention the closure further comprises one ormore content exchange passages connecting the cavity to one or morerespective content exchange ports in the upper portion, the one or morecontent exchange passages being adapted to receive and deliver contentand possibly inert material in and out of the container, respectively.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises oneor more content exchange valves provided at the one or more respectivecontent exchange ports and adapted to open and close the one or morerespective content exchange passages to the atmosphere.

In one embodiment of the invention, the assembly further comprises alongitudinal tension member provided within the container and cavitywithin and adapted to arrest a motion of the closure with respect to thecontainer.

In one embodiment of the invention, the barrier sealant is selected froma group consisting of an aqueous solution, a non-aqueous solution,grease, epoxy, acrylic, polysulfide, UV-cure, time-cure, polyurethaneand adhesive.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provideda closure for sealing of a container, the closure comprising an upperportion and a lower portion, the lower portion having a lower lateralsurface, the lower portion being adapted to be inserted into the openingof the container and two grooves provided on the lower lateral surfaceand adapted to receive two respective sealing members, the two groovesbeing separated by a predetermined distance.

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure further comprises one ormore passages connecting one or more respective sealant receiving portsin the upper portion with one or more respective lateral openings,between the two grooves, in the lower lateral surface

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure further comprises one ormore plugs provided at the one or more respective sealant receivingports, the one or more plugs being adapted to prevent a barrier sealantfrom escaping through the one or more respective passages.

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure is made up of materialselected from a group consisting of metals, ceramics, glasses andpolymers.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisesa lip portion, a width of the lip portion being greater than a width ofthe opening of the container.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisesa second cavity.

In one embodiment of the invention, the second cavity is adapted toreceive one or more of an environmental indicator and an environmentalcontrol element.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion further comprisestwo auxiliary grooves provided at an upper surface of the upper portion,the two auxiliary groves being adapted to receive two respectiveauxiliary sealing members, wherein the two auxiliary grooves areoriented in a direction normal to the two grooves.

In one embodiment of the invention, the one or more passages furtherconnect the one or more respective sealant receiving ports in the upperportion with one or more respective upper openings, between the twoauxiliary grooves, in the upper surface.

In one embodiment of the invention, the closure further comprises one ormore content exchange passages connecting the cavity to one or morerespective content exchange ports in the upper portion, the one or morecontent exchange passages being adapted to receive and deliver contentin and out of the cavity, respectively.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

At least one example of the invention will be described with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of acontainer, having a relatively long and relatively narrow neck, with aclosure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly of thecontainer of FIG. 1A, with the closure, in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of acontainer, having a wide opening, and a closure, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly of thecontainer of FIG. 2A, with the closure, in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of acontainer, having a wide opening, with a closure, in accordance with yetanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly of thecontainer of FIG. 3A, with the closure, in accordance with yet anotherembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of a containerin form of a jug, with a closure, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention; and

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of a containerin form of a section of tubing or pipe, with a closure, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

It should be noted that the same numeral represents the same or similarelements throughout the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The approach described here for sealing glass, metal, ceramic, polymeror similar containers is to use a barrier sealant that conforms to anyimperfections in mating surfaces to form a substantially impermeableseal between a container material and a closure.

If the barrier sealant is chosen to have suitable properties, inparticular, low permeability, it can bring dramatically improvedperformance to a system comprising a container with a closure, byreplacing or augmenting a polymer seal. In general, the barrier sealantalso known as a trapping liquid or a fluid barrier, together with othersealing members, will comprise a multilevel, multicomponent seal. Aminimum of two sealing members are required to isolate the barriersealant from interior and exterior environments, while the barriersealant itself forms a third seal. Such seals can be configured inseries, further increasing the number of sealing levels and impedance tomigration. It is possible to choose barrier sealants that provide muchhigher impedance to ingress and egress than most polymers provide.Further, because many liquids flow readily, they easily conform tospaces that have much larger aspect ratios than are practical withpolymer and plastisol seals, thereby reducing the mechanical precisionrequired for sealing, while increasing resistance to ingress and egress.The large aspect ratio magnifies the diffusion barrier to a much higherimpedance or resistance than is possible with the typical shortplastisol diffusion paths in conventional container closures. Further,barrier sealants can maintain intimate contact for indefinite periodswith the glass, metal, ceramic and plastic surfaces without large forcesand pressures.

The general approach of using barrier sealant seals particularly iscompatible with reuse of containers, which often represent a substantialinvestment of energy, a proxy for money on your planet. Discardingcontainers after one use generally is not a sustainable practice.Avoiding the energy expense of manufacturing and shipping containers isattractive, even if the alternative is to recycle the containermaterial. In the case of glass containers, the energy required to clean,re-melt and reprocess the glass for recycling is a large fraction of theoverall energy investment that has been made in transporting thematerials, fusing the glass or metal, molding the container andtransporting the container to an end user. Repeating those steps withrecycled materials is only marginally more efficient than doing it withvirgin materials. It would be preferable to clean the containers andreuse them.

If containers can be reused indefinitely, the energy waste offabricating and shipping new containers, while landfilling used ones,can be avoided in preference to cleaning and reuse. Similarly, formetal, ceramic and polymer containers, indeed any container, energy isexpended in resource extraction, manufacturing and transportation, whichenergy and investment can be recaptured more fully by reusing thecontainer instead of discarding or recycling it. If both the containersand closures are readily cleaned and reused, it will be a boon tocommerce, particularly in commodities, which represent a large fractionof economic activity and tend to trade at a small premium to cost ofproduction.

Objects of the present inventions include providing a relativelyinexpensive and high quality closure and method of sealing a container,in a way that is readily opened and readily resealed. By high quality ismeant able to exclude contamination by migration from the ambient, whichmay include oxygen, moisture or other gases, vapors, liquids or solidspresent in the environment. Also meant by high quality barrier isability to block egress of contents, vapors and volatiles from thecontainer. The present invention provides significant improvement overthe prior art by employing one or more barrier sealant layers and by theshaping the barrier sealant layer as a thin layer having a high or largeaspect ratio. The present inventions provide new and simple methods andfeatures for installation, maintenance, removal and replacement of fluidbarriers. Because of the large aspect ratio, the path for diffusion ofcontaminants to reach the contents is long, while the area for entryinto the path for diffusion is narrow. The path for constituents of thecontents to diffuse through the barrier sealant and escape also isequally long, while the area for entry into the path for diffusion outalso is equally narrow and the path through the material is as thin andlong as possible. Thin is defined in terms of aspect ratio. Thepreferred aspect ratio is greater than 50. These improvements provide asignificant advance in the state of the art.

Seal geometries in the following drawings are related by symmetry to beessentially the same topological features on a variety of containershapes. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that there arean infinite number of equivalent symmetry transforms that alter themultilevel seal geometry to fit any container that has mathematicallywell-behaved surfaces. The following embodiments are illustrative andnot meant to limit the application to any particular geometry.

FIG. 1A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly 1000 of acontainer 1100, having a relatively long and relatively narrow neck1130, and a closure 1200, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention. The container 1100 may be for example a glass,ceramic, metal or polymer container. The container 1100 has an innercontainer surface 1100 defining a cavity opening to ambient through anopening 1120. The container 1100 is further envisaged to have aheadspace 1140 between contents 1150 and the closure 1200. Typically,the headspace 1140 is evacuated using a vacuum pump, which results inatmospheric pressure being exerted onto the closure 1200, holding theclosure 1200 in a neck 1130 of the container 1100, thereby diminishing aneed for any retention features.

In various embodiments, the closure 1200 may be in the form of a plug,disk or stopper, which may be retained by standard threadedarrangements. In other embodiments, the closure 1200 resembles a winecork, and may be retained by a clip, clamping arrangements or wrappingsas commonly practiced in the wine trade. Further, in variousembodiments, the closure 1200 is made up of materials selected from agroup consisting of metals, ceramics, glasses and polymers. The body ofthe closure 1200 may be shaped by conventional operations such asturning on a lathe, so that it cannot fall into the neck 1130 of thecontainer 1100, which is particularly important in cases where thecontents 1150 are vacuum packed by removing gas from the headspace 1140.Alternatively, the headspace 1140 may be filled with an inert gas suchas nitrogen or argon.

The closure 1200 includes an upper portion 1210 and a lower portion1220. The lower portion 1220 has a lower lateral surface 1222. The lowerportion 1220 is adapted to be inserted into the opening 1120 of thecontainer 1100. Further, two grooves 1224 and 1226 have been provided onthe lower lateral surface 1222. The closure 1200 may be fabricated frommetal, ceramic, glass, plastic, polymer or any suitable combinationthereof. Generally speaking, metal, ceramic, glass and certain polymersare more favorable from the point of view of low permeability. Parts ofthis type have been successfully manufactured using a lathe followed bydrill press operations, although many other manufacturing techniquesalso may be used. The closure 1200 may be fabricated by a series oflathe operations. Turning the outer diameters, the two grooves 1224 and1226, cut-off and facing are simple lathe operations.

Off-axis drilling and cross-drilling can be accomplished readily witheither a C-axis lathe or by using appropriate fixtures in lathes orother machines. Thus, under favorable circumstances, all of the drillingand tapping operations may be carried out on a lathe. Alternatively, allof the features of the closure 1200 may be machined using a mill, oronly the portion which are most suited to the available types ofmachinery. It will be understood by those skilled in the art thataluminum, glass, polymers, ceramics and other materials may befabricated by die casting, molding, stamping and countless other massmanufacturing techniques. The best choice of manufacturing approach willdepend on many factors, particularly the number of pieces to beproduced. It has been found that many of the common aluminum alloys aresuitable materials.

The preferred materials of construction for the closure 1200 are metal,glass, ceramic, and polymer, either singly, or in combination withthemselves and other materials. Materials having similar lowpermeability or materials having other permeability properties may besubstituted as circumstances dictate or allow. Among metals, aluminum isrecognized as a good choice for its low cost, easy machining, lowtoxicity and corrosion resistance, but many other metals or alloys,including, but not limited to, stainless steel, brass, titanium, silver,nickel, tin, and lead, may be appropriate for applications wherecoefficient of expansion matching or resistance to corrosion by aparticular commodity or environment are required. Many other metals,ceramics or plastics also can be used, with the optimum choice dependingon the chemical properties of the materials to be stored, thecoefficient of expansion of the container, strength, durability, ease offabrication and cost considerations.

The two grooves 1224 and 1226 are adapted to receive two respectivesealing members 1310 and 1320. The two grooves 1224 and 1226 areseparated by a predetermined distance. It will be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art that surfaces at the bottoms of the two grooves 1224and 1226 of the closure 1200 where the two sealing members 1310 and the1320 contact should be polished to improve sealing quality. The twosealing members 1310 and 1320 also may be constituted of epoxy or avariety of other molded-in-place sealing materials to providesubstantially the same trapping effect as o-rings provide for thepurposes of the present invention. Molded plastic ring structures withknife edges or injected rings of curable polymers are feasibleembodiments of the two sealing members 1310 and 1320. Additionally, thetwo sealing members 1310 and 1320 may be envisaged to have round, squareor other profiles.

The two sealing members 1310 and 1320 being provided in the tworespective grooves 1224 and 1226, are adapted to provide sealing betweenthe lower lateral surface 1222 and the inner container surface 1110. Invarious embodiments of the invention, the sealing members 1310 and 1320are selected from a group consisting of o-rings, rings or barbs made upof synthetic polymers. As can be seen also from FIG. 1A. the lowerlateral surface 1222, the inner container surface 1110, particularly atthe neck inner surface 1120, and the two auxiliary sealing members 1310and 1320 together define an annular space 1400. A barrier sealant 1450has been provided in the annular space 1400. In various embodiments, thebarrier sealant is selected from a group consisting of an aqueoussolution, a non-aqueous solution, grease, epoxy, acrylic, polysulfide,UV-cure, time-cure, polyurethane and adhesive.

Three levels of sealing are provided, where two sealing members 1310 and1320 trap the barrier sealant 1450 in the annular space 1400. The twosealing members 1310 and 1320 seal against, for example, a smooth glassinner container surface 1110. A first sealing member 1310 traps thebarrier sealant 1450 on the side toward the external ambientenvironment, while a second sealing member 1320 traps the barriersealant 1450 on the side toward the headspace 1140 and the contents1150. The barrier sealant 1450 in an annular space 1400 constitutes anadditional seal with very high barrier properties.

It should be understood that the assembly 1000 comprising the container1100, the closure 1200 and the barrier sealant 1450 can be modeled interms of an electric circuit. The impedance of the two sealing members1310 and 1320, and the barrier sealant 1450 as well as any additionalseals or closures, to the flow of environmental components or thecontents 1150 can be treated as a resistance or impedance to flow, inthis case of material, which is equivalent in form and calculations tothe flow of current through electrical resistance. The partial pressureor chemical activity of any component on one or both sides of the twosealing members 1310 and 1320 and the barrier sealant 1450 can betreated as a voltage tending to drive flow across the impedance. Theheadspace 1140 and the contents 1150 comprise the equivalent ofcapacitances, while the external atmosphere is a battery of infinitecapacity and constant voltage with respect to oxygen. The atmosphericpartial pressure of water vapor varies over time, but usually can beapproximated as an average constant for any locale, because the rate ofingress or egress is small enough relative to container capacity thatthe relevant timescale is months and years, rather than hours and days.If a conventional closure on the container 1100 has added in series withit another closure, the impedances are additive. In the case where bothimpedances are equal before combination, the rate of leakage ofenvironmental contaminants will be reduced by ½ with both closuresacting in series.

In various embodiments, the closure 1200 further comprises one or morepassages 1230 and 1240 connecting one or more respective sealantreceiving ports 1232 and 1242 in the upper portion 1210 with one or morerespective lateral openings 1234 and 1244, between the two grooves 1224and 1226, in the lower lateral surface 1222. The one or more passages1230 and 1240 are provided for injection of the barrier sealant 1450into the annular space 1400 between the two sealing member 1310 and1320. If a passage, for example a first passage 1230, is evacuated atthe same time as the airspace of the container 1100, or the headspace1140, by the use of vacuum packing, then the barrier sealant 1450 may beinjected under vacuum, and driven to completely fill the annular space1400, as well as one or more of the one or more passages 1230 and 1240,by atmospheric pressure behind the barrier sealant 1400. Alternatively,the area of the closure 1200 between the sealant members 1310 and 1320may be immersed in the barrier sealant 1450 before the closure 1200 isinserted through the opening 1120 of the container 1100. This can bedone at any pressure from vacuum to thousands of pounds per square inch,depending on what other process engineering constraints apply. Thus, theannular space may be filled with barrier sealant 1450 without requiringthe use of any optional passages 1230 or 1240.

It is possible to fill the annular space 1400 with the barrier sealant1400 without utilizing any passages 1230 or 1240. The steps are to placethe entire assembly 1000 in a vacuum chamber and remove substantiallyall of the air. After the air has been thoroughly removed from theassembly 1000, including the as-yet unformed annular space 1400, theheadspace 1140 optionally can be backfilled with any suitable gas. Invarious embodiments the gas is nitrogen or argon. The closure 1200 maybe inserted to make a first seal at the second sealing member 1320, thenthe annular space 1400 is pumped full of the barrier sealant 1450 as theclosure 1200 moves to engage the neck 1130 at the first sealing member1310. Alternatively, the closure 1200 and the neck 1130 may be immersedin the barrier sealant 1450 and assembled together thereby completelyfilling the annular space 1400 with barrier sealant 1450 without arequiring the use of one or more passages 1230 and 1240. The closure1200 may be inserted with the container 1100 held in a vacuum chamber,such that little to no air is in the headspace 1140 is in contact withthe contents 1150. This will have the effect of removing air from theheadspace 1140, replacing the air with vacuum.

In various embodiments, the assembly 1000 comprises one or more plugs1510 and 1520 provided at the one or more respective sealant receivingports 1232 and 1242. The one or more plugs 1510 and 1520 are adapted toprevent the barrier sealant 1450 from escaping through the one or morerespective passages 1230 and 1240. Threaded features may be provided atthe one or more respective sealant receiving ports 1232 and 1242 toretain the one or more plugs 1510 and 1520. The one or more plugs 1510and 1520 may be driven into threads at the one or more respectivesealant receiving ports 1232 and 1242, having threaded features, using ahex key, spline key or other tool, as appropriate. Alternatives tothreaded features include pressed in metal, plastic or elastomer pins,with or without barbs or other retention means. In cases where thebarrier sealant 1450 is a curable sealant, it generally is unnecessaryto block the escape. The friction of the two sealing member 1310 and1320 usually is sufficient to overcome gravity, but may not be able toresist gas pressures that result from vacuum, heating or cooling of gasin the headspace 1140, or outgassing of the contents 1150.

FIG. 1B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100 of FIG. 1A, and the closure 1200, in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention. A clamping arrangement 1600adapted to clamp the closure 1200 with the container 1100 has beenprovided. A clamp 1610 is used to retain the closure 1200 from beingejected by pressure from the contents 1150 and the headspace 1140. Theclamp 1610 may be retained by a ridge 1620 that engages a ring feature1132 on the bottle neck 1130. A tension member 1630 such as a zip-tie,hose clamp or wire tie may be installed in a groove 1640 to insure thatthe ridge 1620 cannot slip over the ring feature 1132 until such time asthe user wishes to access the contents 1150, and releases the tension ofthe member 1630.

FIG. 2A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100, having a wide opening, and the closure 1200, inaccordance with an embodiment 2000 of the present invention. Thisembodiment is substantially identical to the embodiment of FIG. 1,except that the shape or aspect ratio of the closure 1200 is changedfrom a long plug or stopper shape to a disk shape. The larger surfacearea of the opening 1120 encourages innovations that would not fit ontothe closure of FIG. 1. Because of the larger area of the closure 1200,it is much easier to be upset by gas pressures from the headspace 1140,and vacuum may drive it into the neck 1130 damaging material of thecontainer 1100. Therefore, the upper portion 1210 further comprises alip portion 2010, a width of the lip portion 2010 being greater than awidth of the opening 1120 of the container 1100. The purpose of the lipportion 2010 is to bear the vertical pressure of ambient atmosphere.

FIG. 2B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100 of FIG. 2A, and the closure 1200, in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen from theFIG. 2A, the assembly 1000 further comprises a second closure 2030having a substantially flat disk 2032 fastened to the container 1100 andplaced above the closure 1200. Jar threads 2020, normally are used tohold a substantially flat closure having a plastisol sealing gasket 2034on top of the container 1100. The jar threads 2020 may be used with thesubstantially flat disk 2032 in conjunction with the closure 1200described here, such that the barrier sealant 1450 will present afurther impedance beyond what is provided by plastisol sealing gasket2034 to the undesirable flows of contaminants from the environment, andegress of components from the contents 1150.

In one embodiment of the invention, the upper portion 1210 furthercomprises a second cavity 2040. The second cavity 2040 is adapted toreceive one or more of an environmental indicator 2042 and anenvironmental control element 2044, such as humidity indicator andoxygen absorbers, respectively.

The method of manufacture of flatter version of the closure 1200 may bedifferent series of operations, but as with the example in FIG. 1, theoverall shape and many of the features can be produced with simple latheoperations. For example, pressed sheet metal versions are a likely stepin the direction of low-cost mass manufacture for the embodiments ofFIG. 2, as the two grooves 1224 and 1226 may be formed in a pressingoperation that makes the closure 1200 from very inexpensive sheet metal.The key difference is that the much larger neck 1130 of the container1100 requires a different aspect ratio for a part of very similarunderlying geometry to the embodiment of FIG. 1. The disk 1200 must haveacceptable dimensions for the two sealing member 1310 and 1320 tocontact the inner container surface 1110. In this embodiment, thediameter of the closure 1200 is expanded to match the wide opening 1120of the container 1100. If the inner container surface 1110 hassignificant taper, it is preferred that the closure 1200 also match thetaper angle of inner container surface 1110 as closely as feasible. Theadvantage of closely matching the taper is that the aspect ratio of theresulting annular space 1400 and the corresponding barrier sealant 1450is maximized, thereby reducing diffusion from the environment to theheadspace 1140 and vice versa.

Again, the preferred material of manufacture for the closure 1200 is analuminum alloy, for example, 6061, but many other materials may besubstituted successfully, depending on the application. For example,aluminum has a relatively large coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE)of about 24 ppm/C that is a less than ideal match to glass. Typical sodalime glasses have CTE's in the range of 7 ppm. Depending on thetemperature range of use, coefficient mismatches may necessitate largerclearances to avoid breakage, and those clearances will have toaccommodate the range of acceptable compression for the two sealingmembers 1310 and 1320, which often are o-rings. Allowing for clearanceover temperature will undesirably reduce the aspect ratio of the barriersealant 1450 in the annular space 1400. For containers that willexperience large variations of temperature, such as shipments to polarregions or hot desert regions, it may be advantageous to use a materialthat has a closer match to the coefficient of thermal expansion ofglass, or to make the container from aluminum. For example, stainlesssteel has a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of about 15 ppm/C,while the soda lime glass commonly used in bottles, jugs and jars ofcommerce has a typical CTE of 7 ppm/C. This difference of 8 ppm/C is amuch better match of CTE than aluminum to glass, for which thedifference is close to 17 ppm/C. A further advantage of stainless steelis that it may be readily pressed into sheet metal structures, whichinherently have more flexibility than solid aluminum disks. Thecompliance of a springy sheet metal disk is less likely to break glass,irrespective of the coefficient mismatch.

As before, the one or more passages 1230 and 1240 may be provided tofacilitate placement of the barrier sealant 1450 between the two sealingmembers 1310 and 1320. In the case of a sheet metal version of theclosure 1200, the one or more passages 1230 and 1240 may be attached bybrazing or welding or the method of installing the barrier sealant 1450into the annular space 1400 under vacuum must be employed. Hard solderor brazing is a feasible approach to installing a machined portionhaving one or more passages 1230 and 1240 onto a sheet metal diskstructure.

The following description is with regard to FIG. 2A, 2B, which shows theclosure 1200 suited for insertion into the neck 1130 of the container1100 with a wide opening 1120. The body of the closure 1200 may beshaped by conventional operations such as pressing or turning on alathe, so that it cannot fall into the container 1100, which isparticularly important in cases where the contents 1150 are vacuumpacked under the evacuated headspace 1140 and/or under evacuated secondcavity 2040. For a wide closure 1200, the force of air pressure againstthe vacuum combined with the wedge angle may be sufficient to break theglass neck 1130. The design trade-space for the two grooves 1224 and1226 is well understood with respect to compression, seal quality andforce, but generally speaking o-rings should be compressed to about 85%of the cordstock diameter, with sufficient groove width to accommodatethe resulting expansion in the perpendicular axis. The tradeoff betweencost, size, o-ring barrier properties and tolerances of the mating partswill affect what o-ring cordstock diameter is optimal, where largero-rings offer a more favorable range of accommodation at the expense ofmore diffusion. With suitable fixtures, all of the drilling and tappingoperations on the closure 1200 may be carried out on a lathe, althoughthis is not the generally preferred method of manufacture for relativelyflat parts. Alternative methods of manufacture will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art. There are many correct approaches, but the mostsuitable method depends of scale of production.

FIG. 3A illustrates a cross-sectional view of the assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100, having a wide opening, and the closure 1200, inaccordance with yet another embodiment 3000 of the present invention.Here, a flat glass plate 3050 placed between the substantially flat disk2032 and the closure 1200. Further, the upper portion 1210 furthercomprises two auxiliary grooves 3010 and 3020 provided at an uppersurface 1212 of the upper portion 1210 of the closure 1200. The twoauxiliary groves 3010 and 3020 are adapted to receive two respectiveauxiliary sealing members 3110 and 3120. Also, the two auxiliary grooves3010 and 3020 are oriented in a direction normal to the two grooves 1224and 1226. The two auxiliary sealing members 3110 and 3120 are adapted toprovide sealing between a lower plate surface 3052 of the flat glassplate 3050 and the upper surface 1212, wherein the upper surface 1212,the lower plate surface 3052 and the two auxiliary sealing members 3110and 3120 define an auxiliary annular space 3200. The one or morepassages 1230 and 1240 further connect the one or more respectivesealant receiving ports 1232 and 1242 in the upper portion 1210 with oneor more respective upper openings 3310 and 3320, between the twoauxiliary grooves 3010 and 3020, in the upper surface 1212.

The flat glass plate 3050 is much easier to remove and replace withouthaving to replace the majority of the barrier sealant 1450. Theauxiliary annular space 3200 can have a much higher aspect ratio,providing a higher impedance to the entry of contaminants into thecontainer 1100. Another advantage of auxiliary annular space 3200 isthat it allows the use of the flat glass plate 3050, which bringsseveral further significant advantages. First, the flat glass plate 3050made by a float process is very inexpensive, smooth to the nanometerlevel and flat to a few wavelengths of light per inch. Thus, theauxiliary annular space 3200 can be much thinner, i.e., manufactured tomuch tighter tolerances, leading to a very high impedance for entry ofcontaminants, or escape of the contents 1150. A further advantage of theflat glass plate 3050 is that it can be clear to allow viewing of theenvironmental indicators 2044 placed in the second cavity 2040 to reporton the condition of the contents 1150 and the headspace 1140. Tomaintain sealing pressure of the flat glass plate 3050 against the thetwo auxiliary sealing members 3110 and 3120 as well as the barriersealant 1450, auxiliary annular space 3200 may be evacuated to create apressure differential that maintains a net 14.7 pounds per square inchof atmospheric pressure against the flat glass plate 3050 in theauxiliary annular space 3200.

FIG. 3B illustrates the cross-sectional view of the assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100 of FIG. 3A, and the closure 1200, in accordance with yetanother embodiment of the present invention. The closure 1200 furthercomprises one or more content exchange passages 3510 and 3520 connectingthe cavity to one or more respective content exchange ports 3512 and3522 in the upper portion 1210. The one or more content exchangepassages 3510 and 3520 are adapted to receive and deliver the content1150 in and out of the cavity, respectively. Additionally, one or morecontent plugs 3514 and 3524 may be placed to plug the flow of contents1150 from the one or more respective content exchange ports 3512 and3522, respectively. A conventional closure liner 3530 provides anadditional layer of sealing, being clamped firmly in place by aconventional screw-on cap 3540.

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the assembly 1000 of thecontainer 1100 in form of a jug, and the closure 1200, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention. Typically, glass jugs aremanufactured in the US in 128, 64 and 32 ounce sizes, with most havingthe same 38 mm cap. The diameter of the closure 1200 is expandedrelative to FIG. 1 and reduced relative to FIG. 2 to match the jug 1100neck finish, including taper. Again, the preferred material ofmanufacture for the closure 1200 is aluminum, but many other materialsmay be substituted successfully, depending on the particularapplication. A piece of tubing or pipe may be substituted for thecontainer 1100 and the neck 1130 and used as an inexpensive andwell-sealed container. The piece of tubing can be closed at the otherend by a variety of means, including welding, adhesive or a secondclosure equivalent to the closure 1200.

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an assembly of a containerin form of a piece of tubing, and at least one closure, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention. Metal, glass, ceramic andpolymer or plastic tubing are attractive from the point of view of beinginexpensive, mass-produced forms that can be used for a variety ofpurposes, including packaging, storage and shipping of commodities. Apiece of tubing, cut to a suitable length, can be closed at one end withthe closure 1200. The other end may be closed by a variety of means,including a similar closure 1200, welding, crimping, or many othersobvious to those skilled in the art. A closure 1200 can be used at theopposite end, or the opposite end may be closed by a fusion process inthe case of glass tubing, by a welding, brazing or soldering operationin the case of metal tubing or by a sintering operation in the case ofceramic tubing. A plastic tube or pipe may be solvent welded. Almost anytube or pipe may be sealed with epoxy or other organic resin.

As shown in FIG. 5, the assembly 1100 further comprises one or morecontent exchange valves 5010 and 5020 provided at the one or morerespective content exchange ports 3512 and 3522 and adapted to open andclose the one or more respective content exchange passages 3510 and 3520to the atmosphere. Use of the one or more content exchange valves 5010and 5020 may be more convenient because it avoids the need to clean andreplace the barrier sealant 1450 around the closure 1200. The one ormore content plugs 3514 and 3524 also can be removed to access thecontents 1150. Because one or more content exchange valves 5010 and 5020generally are mass manufactured from metal, the internal sealing ofvalves is orders of magnitude more effective than sealing provided bythe plastisol seals or polymer liners in conventional closures.

The use of the barrier sealant 1450 may be extended to cases where thebarrier sealant 1450 is moved in the course of normal operation to openand close the one or more respective content exchange passages 3510 and3520. The one or more content exchange passages 3510 and 3520 throughthe one or more content exchange valves 5010 and 5020 may be blocked bythe barrier fluid sealant while the one or more content exchange valves5010 and 5020 are closed, thereby improving the overall sealing functionof the one or more content exchange valves 5010 and 5020. For example,in the case of valves that use polymer o-rings for sealing or are notmanufactured to tight mechanical tolerances that effect nearly perfectsealing. The closure 1200 itself on the container 1100 essentially is anon-off valve that either blocks egress of the contents 1150 from thecontainer 1100 when it is closed, as well as blocking ingress ofenvironmental components, or permits the contents 1150 of the container1100 to be poured or otherwise accessed when it is open. Invariably,when the container 1100 is open, the environment and the contents 1150interact. Many closures with valves built in are known for use inhandling certain commodities, particularly gases and volatile liquids,but none of those valves, or very few, use barrier fluids to improveperformance in blocking either ingress of environmental contaminants andcomponents, or in blocking egress of contents or volatile constituents.While valved containers are widely used in industry, it is very rare forthem to be seen in routine commerce of foodstuffs. In the instant case,low tolerance content exchange valves may be built into the closure 1200and sealed with barrier sealant 1450.

In particular, the smooth pipe or tubing 1100 does not offer muchresistance to slippage of the closure 1200 or closures 1200. Therefore,the assembly 1000 further comprises a longitudinal tension member 5100provided within the cavity and adapted to arrest a motion of the closure1200 with respect to the container 1100. In one embodiment, thelongitudinal tension member 5100 is threaded. The use of the threadedlongitudinal tension member 5100 to carry tension generated by gaspressure from the headspace 1140 or thermal expansion of the contents1150 generally is not necessary, if the contents 1150 are packaged undervacuum, but recommended in cases where they are not. The longitudinaltension member 5100 may be disposed internally with the contents 1150,as in FIG. 5, or externally, which is not shown.

Removal of the closure 1200 described thus far relative to FIGS. 1through 4 is necessary to facilitate access to the contents 1150. Ingeneral, it may be desirable to provide easier access to the contents1150 of the container 1100 than complete removal of the closure 1200, asthe operation of removing the closure 1200 requires removal of thebarrier sealant 1450. To remove the contents 1150 and displace them withadditional inert headspace 1140 gas, the the one or more contentexchange valves 5010 and 5020 can be connected to other vessels, onecontaining a supply of inert gas and one providing a container toreceive the contents 1150. The valve 5010 is opened, then the valve 5020is partially opened to allow gas to drive the contents 1150 into thereceiving vessel. When a sufficient quantity of the contents 1150 havebeen dispensed, the the one or more content exchange valves 5010 and5020 are closed. The residual material at the exits of the the one ormore content exchange valves 5010 and 5020 may be cleaned off.

A variety of materials may be used as the barrier sealant, but thegeneral properties sought are fluidity sufficient to allow filling ofhigh aspect ratio spaces, low diffusivity, nontoxicity, low vaporpressure and most importantly, high barrier to diffusion. Preferably,the barrier sealant materials also would be inexpensive, although costalways can be balanced against performance. A large number of candidatematerials meet these criteria. In general, these properties may be foundin aqueous gels and solutions, which are well known in commerce forother purposes. Using a gel or thickened solution in place of pure waterreduces the effect of convection, constraining transport of fugitivematerials to diffusion, rather than allowing a combination of diffusionand convection to transport materials at a higher rate. If the gellingconstituent or constituents further impede diffusion beyond simplystopping convection, by increasing viscosity and reducing diffusioncoefficients, that is even more advantageous. Absolutely impermeablesolids, such as clay nanoparticles, carbon materials, mineral fillers,quartz flour, fumed silica and many others may be added to the barrierfluid to alter viscosity and increase diffusion pathlength while furtherreducing diffusion.

Hydrocarbon, silicone and other greases and oils also may be used as thebarrier sealant, in addition to aqueous and non-aqueous fluids. The useof silicone grease compositions as diffusion barriers is well known inthe practice of vacuum technology, where the low vapor pressure and highaspect ratio are extremely useful. Silicone greases for high vacuumsystems often are thickened with fumed silica, quartz flour, or othersilica-based species that enhance diffusion barrier properties. Theaspect ratios in the implementations described herein may be somewhatlower than are found in high vacuum systems, but the same generalprinciples apply. Other additives, such as clay, mineral dust, metalflakes or carbon powder, also may be added to aqueous liquids,non-aqueous liquids, greases, gels, epoxy, acrylic, polyurethane orother liquids to significantly increase diffusion pathlengths,effectively increasing the aspect ratio of the barrier sealant. In somecases, the barrier sealant layer may be cured to a solid, semisolid orgel state by a variety of methods that are known in the art. Forexample, the fluid may be a UV-cure epoxy resin of the general type soldby several vendors, including, but not limited to Epoxy Technology,Henkel, or others. The barrier sealant may be injected into the sealingspace under vacuum, then cured by time, heat, irradiation withelectromagnetic energy or particles or the prior addition of a curingagent. The use of ultraviolet irradiation from light emitting diodes,xenon or mercury arc lamps is particularly convenient. Generallyspeaking, converting the fluid from a liquid to a gel or from a gel to asolid reduces the rate of diffusion, ceteris paribus.

Liquid metals, including low-melting solders, also are attractivediffusion barriers for certain applications. Sodium-potassium alloys,indium-gallium and indium-gallium-tin alloys can have melting pointsnear and below room temperature. A variety of other low melting alloysincluding various combinations of indium, tin, and bismuth may be usedto produce low-toxicity solder alloys suitable for use in the containerand closure geometries described herein. The extremely high surfacetensions of liquid metals tend to exclude oxygen and moisture from goinginto solution. If the metals can be injected at low temperatures andfrozen in place, they can provide absolute sealing.

EXAMPLE 1-INSTALLATION AND USE

The sealing members 1310 and 1320 are installed on the closure 1200 bystretching them over the end and sliding them into the two grooves 1224and 1226. Preferably, the sealing members 1310 and 1320 are lightlylubricated, as is well known in various trades. The contents 1150 areplaced in the container 1100. In this example, the contents 1150 may beseeds that are sensitive to oxygen and moisture. An optional step is toplace the container 1100 with the contents 1150 into a vacuum system andremove air, then backfill the headspace 1140 with inert gas. Any voidspace between the seeds also will be purged of air and replaced by inertgas by this operation. Alternatively, the closure 1200 may be insertedunder vacuum, without inert gas backfill. In lieu of evacuating theheadspace 1140, it simply may be purged with a suitable inert gas, whichmay be nitrogen or argon. Any desired oxygen absorbers, desiccants,environmental controls, indicators and condition sensors then are placedin the headspace 1140, which is located in the neck 1130 of thecontainer 1100, below where the closure 1200 will be placed.

Optional absorbers 2100 may be attached to the closure 1200 by a hanger2150 to a suitable hole pattern 2150 drilled in the bottom of thestopper 1200. The stopper 1200 is then inserted into the neck 1130 ofcontainer 1100 using a suitable actuator while maintaining vacuum orinert gas purge conditions. To maintain inert gas purge conditions, theassembly 1000 may be a handled in a glovebox with suitable atmosphere,where a vacuum purge cycle is provided by cycling the airlock to theglovebox. The vacuum may be relieved before or after the next step. Thetip of a plastic syringe filled with the barrier sealant 1450 isinserted into the end of the one or more passages 1230 and 1240. Thesyringe then is operated to inject sealant into either of the one ormore passages 1230 and 1240 until it completely fills the annular space1400 and comes out of the other passage, respectively. The syringetypically would have a capacity in the range of 1 to 10 cc's, but thetotal volume of the annular space 1400 and the one or more passages 1230and 1240 has been less than 0.4 cubic centimeters in many cases.Numerous containers 1100 typically can be sealed with a single syringefull of the barrier sealant 1450. One or more plugs 1510 and 1520 may beinstalled into the one or more respective sealant receiving ports 1232and 1242 to prevent leakage of the barrier sealant 1450. An optionalclamp 1610 may then be placed over the closure 1200 to prevent it frombeing dislodged by shipping, handling or gas pressure. Preferably, theclamp 1610 is secured by the tension member 1630, which may be a hoseclamp, wire tie, or plastic zip tie that may engage the ring feature1132. If the barrier sealant 1400 requires a curing cycle, possibly byultraviolet light, radiation or heat exposure, it may be cured at thisstep in the process.

EXAMPLE 2-REMOVAL

At such time as the contents 1150 are to be used, the clamp 1610 isremoved, for example, by cutting the ziptie 1630. Then the closure 1200is pulled from the container 1100 and the contents 1150 dispensed bypouring or other appropriate method. To facilitate pulling, the rim 2010of the closure 1200 may be knurled or drilled, or provided with otherwell-known extraction features. After the closure 1200 is pulled, thebarrier sealant 1450 may be wiped from the closure 1200 and rim of thecontainer 1100. Very little of the barrier sealant 1450 will be left inor on the neck 1130, because the bottom sealing member 1320 acts as awiper to pull the barrier sealant 1450 out of the neck 1130 and onto therim of the container 1100, where it can be easily wiped off or rinsedaway. The contents 1150 of the container 1100 then may be dispensed.After the container 1100 is empty, both it and the closure 1200 may bethoroughly cleaned, for example by a dishwashing machine, to removeresidues of the contents 1150 and the barrier sealant 1450. Thecontainer 1100, the closure 1200 and clamp 1610 then are ready for reuseas described above.

EXAMPLE 3- INSTALLATION AND USE

Install the two sealing members 1310 and 1320 on the closure 1200 bystretching and sliding into place in the two grooves 1224 and 1226.Preferably, the two sealing members 1310 and 1320 are lightly lubricatedwith a food-grade oil or grease to facilitate installation and sealing.Place the contents 1150 in the container 1100. In this example, thecontents 1150 may be oxygen and moisture sensitive nuts, such aswalnuts. Place the container 1100 with the contents 1150 into vacuumsystem and remove air in headspace 1140 and the second cavity 2040.Attach absorbers 2100 such as desiccant and oxygen absorber to theclosure 1200, so that they will hang in the headspace 1140. Place theenvironmental controls in the second cavity 2040. Insert the closure1200 into neck 1130 of the container 1100 using suitable actuator whilemaintaining vacuum conditions or inert gas atmosphere as before.

The vacuum may be relieved before or after the next step. Insert the tipof a plastic syringe filled with the barrier sealant 1450 into one ofthe one or more sealant receiving ports 1232 or 1242 in the closure 1200and inject until the barrier sealant comes out of the other sealantreceiving port 1232 or 1242, as the case may be. If the system still isunder vacuum and there is only one passage 1230, with the second passage1240 being optional, then the syringe may be injected into the passage1230 to completely fill the annular space 1400 with the barrier sealant1450. If the annular space 1400 is well evacuated, there will be no gaspresent to impede complete filling of the passage 1230 and the annularspace 1400. The syringe typically should have a capacity in the range of1 to 10 cc's. For a large opening container 1100 with a nominal neckfinish diameter around 3″, the annular space may have a volume in therange of 1 to 10 cc's, depending on how tight the fit is between theneck 1130 and the closure 1200.

The one or more plugs 1510 and 1520 may be installed into the one ormore respective sealant receiving ports 1232 and 1242. Place the clamp1610 or the second closure 2030 over the closure 1200 to prevent theclosure 1200 from being dislodged by shipping and handling. The flatglass plate 3050 with the plastisol sealing gasket 2034 may be installedunder the second closure 2030 to close off the second cavity 2040 fromthe environment. A number of alternatives for the clamp 1610 areavailable to insure that the closure 1200 does not slip out of the neck1130, e.g., as a result of environmental heat expanding the contents1150 and any gas in the headspaces 1140 and the second cavity 2040. Afoil wrapper of the type used in the wine industry, or a heat shrinktubing also may be used to secure the closure 1200 in the neck 1130 ofthe container 1100 as described relative to FIG. 1. Such devices arewell understood in the packaging trade.

EXAMPLE 4-INSTALLATION AND USE

The container 1100 in form of tubing or pipe should be thoroughlycleaned after machining to remove potential contaminants, as well as allof the other components, particularly including the closure 1200, theone or more content exchange passages 3510 and 3520 and the longitudinaltension member 5100. The closure 1200 is inserted into the container1100 and the content exchange valve 5010 closed. The contents 1150 couldbe poured into the container 1100 up to a level that leaves sufficientspace for the closure 1200 at a second open end of the container 1100,or the system could be closed with the closure 1200 at the second openend before filling via the one or more content exchange valves 5010 and5020 and the one or more content exchange passages 3510 and 3520.Typically, the longitudinal tension member 5100 would be permanentlyinstalled into the closure 1200.

The permanent attachment of the longitudinal tension member 5100 to theclosure 1200 simplifies the cleaning process for reuse, because thecontents 1150 cannot seep into the threads at the point of contactbetween the longitudinal tension member 5100 and the closure 1200. Withthe contents 1150 in place, the closure 1200 at the second end can beslid into the bore of the container 1100 until it contacts thelongitudinal tension member 5100. At this point, the closure 1200 at thesecond end must be gently turned relative to the assembly of thecontainer 1100, the closure 1200 at the first end and the longitudinaltension member 5100, until the lip portion 2010 meets the rim of thecontainer 1100. Now, the barrier sealant 1450 may be introduced into oneof the one or more passages 1230 and 1240 using a syringe, until itfills the annular space 1400 and the auxiliary annular space 3200. Theplugs 1510 and 1520 then are installed in the passages 1230 and 1240 atboth of the first end and the second end to block escape of the barrierfluid sealant 1450. The filled container 1100 is now ready for use instorage or shipping. The contents 1150 may be dispensed by opening theone or more content exchange valves 5010 and 5020, and applying a smallamount of inert gas pressure.

The terms and descriptions used herein are set forth by way ofillustration only and are not meant as limitations. Examples andlimitations disclosed herein are intended to be not limiting in anymanner, and modifications may be made without departing from the spiritof the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will recognize thatmany variations are possible within the spirit and scope of thedisclosure, and their equivalents, in which all terms are to beunderstood in their broadest possible sense unless otherwise indicated.

Various modifications to these embodiments are apparent to those skilledin the art from the description and the accompanying drawings. Theprinciples associated with the various embodiments described herein maybe applied to other embodiments. Therefore, the description is notintended to be limited to the embodiments shown along with theaccompanying drawings but is to be providing broadest scope ofapplication consistent with the principles and the novel and inventivefeatures disclosed or suggested herein. Accordingly, the disclosure isanticipated to hold on to all other such alternatives, modifications,and variations that fall within the scope of the present disclosure andappended claims.

1. A closure for sealing a container having an inner container surfacedefining a cavity opening to ambient through an opening, the closurecomprising: an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein the upperportion is sized so as to not fit within a container and the lowerportion having a lower lateral surface, wherein the lower portion isconfigured to be inserted into a cavity opening of a container; twogrooves provided on the lower lateral surface configured to receive tworespective sealing members, wherein the two grooves are separated by apredetermined distance; the two sealing members provided in the tworespective grooves, wherein the two sealing members are configured toprovide sealing between the lower lateral surface and the innercontainer surface, wherein the lower lateral surface, the innercontainer surface and the two auxiliary sealing members together definean annular space; and a barrier sealant in the annular space, whereinthe closure seals the container preventing gas or liquid from escapingthe opening.
 2. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sealingmembers are selected from a group consisting of O-rings and barbs madeup of a synthetic polymer.
 3. The assembly as claimed in claim 1,further comprising a clamping arrangement adapted to clamp the closurewith the container.
 4. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein theclosure further comprises one or more passages connecting one or morerespective sealant receiving ports in the upper portion with one or morerespective lateral openings, between the two grooves, in the lowerlateral surface.
 5. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, furthercomprising one or more plugs provided at the one or more respectivesealant receiving ports, the one or more plugs being adapted to preventthe barrier sealant from escaping through the one or more respectivepassages.
 6. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the closure ismade up of material selected from a group consisting of metals,ceramics, glasses and polymers.
 7. The assembly as claimed in claim 1,wherein the upper portion further comprises a lip portion, a width ofthe lip portion being greater than a width of the opening of thecontainer.
 8. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the upperportion further comprises a second cavity.
 9. The assembly as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the second cavity is adapted to receive one or more ofan environmental indicator and an environmental control element.
 10. Theassembly as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a second closurehaving a substantially flat disk fastened to the container and placedabove the closure.
 11. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, furthercomprising a flat glass plate placed between the substantially flat diskand the closure.
 12. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein theupper portion further comprises two auxiliary grooves provided at anupper surface of the upper portion, the two auxiliary groves beingadapted to receive two respective auxiliary sealing members, wherein thetwo auxiliary grooves are oriented in a direction normal to the twogrooves.
 13. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one or morepassages further connect the one or more respective sealant receivingports in the upper portion with one or more respective upper openings,between the two auxiliary grooves, in the upper surface.
 14. Theassembly as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the two auxiliarysealing members adapted to provide sealing between a lower plate surfaceof the flat glass plate and the upper surface, wherein the uppersurface, the lower plate surface and the two auxiliary sealing membersdefine an auxiliary annular space.
 15. The assembly as claimed in claim1, wherein the closure further comprises one or more content exchangepassages connecting the cavity to one or more respective contentexchange ports in the upper portion, the one or more content exchangepassages being adapted to receive and deliver content in and out of thecavity, respectively.
 16. The assembly as claimed in claim 1, furthercomprising one or more content exchange valves provided at the one ormore respective content exchange ports and adapted to open and close theone or more respective content exchange passages to the atmosphere. 17.The assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the barrier sealant isselected from a group consisting of an aqueous solution, a non-aqueoussolution, grease, epoxy, acrylic, polysulfide, UV-cure, time-cure,polyurethane and adhesive.